CHRIS
FRESQUE
Toronto’s underground scene is full of diversity and talent. One individual
articulating the growth of the scene is Chris Fresque, known as Fresque when
behind the DJ booth. Along with being involved in nearly every facet of Toronto’s
tech scene, Chris has recently built a new Sunday brand that is catching on like
wild?re. The new project, CLub 120 on Church Streets, has a major focus put on
intimacy and artists forming an integral part of Toronto’s tech house scene. Not
only is Chris booking and running the show but he’s also the resident DJ of the
Sunday afternoon event, sometimes running from 11am until 3am, marking
a whopping 14 hours of groovy tech and tribal tunes. We spoke with Chris to
understand how he tackles all this at once.
I’d like to talk to you about the companies you’ve engaged with
in the past decade, can you describe that journey a bit?
My DJ carrier has had its ups and downs since 2006 but its all been fun and a good
learning experience. I was picked up by Ink just before a lot of changes happened
in the industry but I was very proud of myself for achieving what I looked at as
sort of the holy grail of DJing at the time. Back then only a select few were ever
picked up to spin and I was happy that I had made enough noise to get noticed. It
took a long time and was a lot of hard work, I guess that drive ended up sticking
with me to this day. During my time with them I played many great clubs here in
Toronto; Comfort Zone, Footwork, and different rooms inside The Guvernment,
particularly the Acid lounge for a few years. This was a very fun time but all things
change and I am off on a different adventure now. I have also been pushing hard
with production and releasing on some great labels lately such as Toolroom,
Jekos and 6N7 to name a few.
How about the tech/tribal genre. What draws you to the
exclusivity of that genre itself?
I used to play a mix of Electro and tribal when I ?rst started DJing back in 2006
but over time I have been concentrating on honing my sound as a DJ and in my
production. Over time I fell in love with the genre and I only play or produce what
I like and have passion for. For me if there is no passion there then there is no
point of doing what you are doing. If you lose this then it just turns into a job
and loses all the appeal. Tech house has a bounce and energy to it, this keeps me
interested and passionate about the genre.
Let’s talk about ‘Stacked Sundays.’ What has the reception of
the event been like so far?
the appropriate changes where needed in order to make this into a great event
and a great place to hang out with friends on a Sunday. I have a lot of fresh ideas
that I want to incorporate in the future and hope that the event turns into a
staple for good music in Toronto.
What is the dynamic like being both a performer and event
runner with Stacked Sundays speci?cally?
It’s a bit stressful at times, it is a lot of work organizing it but I love it. I put a lot of
passion into what I do and hope people can see my effort to make something for
the right reasons. The performing part is a bonus, I love to spin and this gives me
the opportunity to spin weekly at a great venue and test out my new production. I
hope with some success I can hire people to help out but we are just starting out
and I unfortunately have to do just about everything so it gets a little hectic at
times, but in the end it’s all worth it. No one ever made anything without trying
so best to get up and get going.
You seem to wear many hats, running an after-hours event,
performing, producing and even juggling design work. How do
you prioritize the workload and bring structure to it?
That’s a good question. If I ?gure out a good way to do it all I will let you know.
But in all seriousness I can’t do it all. I try my best to get things done that have
priority and some things get pushed to the side. But I love doing what I am
passionate about and take on whatever I happen to be interested in at the time.
I think that everyone should have this in their life at least to some extent. I am
a ?rm believer in being happy with what you do in life, good or bad, it’s a great
feeling to be able to do what you love.
Did the entrepreneurial aspirations regarding your apparel line
just come as second nature for you?
I have always been a self-taught person. If I want to do something I go for it,
sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t. But the main thing is that I try. I
love making hats, Music, graphic design, at the moment. But I am always on the
lookout for a new ambition. That’s my second nature I guess you could say, not
just apparel, but being an entrepreneur in general. Music was my ?rst real passion
though and al ways will be.
Feedback about the venue, staff and the music has been great. I think that people
really appreciate that I put a lot of thought and effort into creating a good lineup
and keeping the music ?owing properly. We are constantly learning and making
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